Beekeeper wins Rural Crime Innovation Challenge
A Saskatchewan beekeeper’s innovative security system has won the province’s first Rural Crime Innovation Challenge, and he expects to begin a public pilot by spring.
Jeff Shirley, a Saskatchewan farmer and owner of Rivercity Technology Services Ltd., developed an app which he initially used to improve security for beehives at his commercial apiary near Wakaw. When the province put out a call looking for innovative technology to combat rural crime, Shirley said he realized his app could be used to protect more than just hives. During the initial meetings, Shirley said he met and partnered with Prince Albert’s William Topping, founder of Brand X Technologies, to help with the hardware side of the project.
“He had a piece of hardware that I thought would work really well with my software app,” Shirley said. “The two of us got our heads together and we combined our proposals.”
Together, Shirley and Topping developed a GPS-tracking box which can alert owners through a web app when their property is tampered with. The self-powered and weather-proof box is about the size of a pack of cards, Shirley said, which means it can be placed almost anywhere.